Fed again pledges to hold rates at record-lows WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Federal Reserve pledged Wednesday to keep a key interest rate at a record low for an "extended period," signaling that the weak economy remains dependent on government help to grow. The Fed said economic activity has "continued to pick up" and that the housing market has strengthened _ a key ingredient for a sustained recovery. But Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues warned that rising joblessness and tight credit for many people and companies could restrain the rebound in the months ahead. ___ Stocks give up gains in last hour, finish mixed NEW YORK (AP) _ A late-day slump left stocks mixed Wednesday as investors couldn't hold on to their optimism after the Federal Reserve gave an encouraging assessment of the economy. The Dow Jones industrial average, up more than 150 points after the Fed described the economy as showing more signs of recovery, closed up 30. Broader indexes were narrowly mixed. Stocks could get a lift Thursday from Cisco Systems Inc., which reported posted better quarterly earnings and sales than expected after the closing bell. John Chambers, CEO of the maker of computer-networking gear, struck an optimistic tone in a conference call with analysts and said orders continue to rebound. ___ NY joins the antitrust effort against Intel NEW YORK (AP) _ New York's attorney general hit Intel Corp. with an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday, claiming the company used "illegal threats and collusion" to dominate the market for computer microprocessors. Following a similar case in Europe, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo claimed that the world's biggest computer chip maker paid billions of dollars in kickbacks to computer manufacturers and retaliated against those that did too much business with Intel's competitors, namely Advanced Micro Devices Inc. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Wilmington, Del., is the latest in a string targeting Intel's practice of paying large annual rebates to big customers. ___ ISM's service sector index grows again in October NEW YORK (AP) _ The U.S. service sector grew for a second straight month in October, but at a slower pace than in September, as a broad economic recovery creeps along. The Institute for Supply Management said Wednesday that its service index dipped to 50.6 last month from 50.9. Any reading above 50 signals growth. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected a 51.5 for the index that tracks the country's hospitals, retailers, financial services companies and truckers. But new orders, an augur of future activity, rose to 55.6, from 54.2 in September. Business activity also rose. Still, the decline in employment worsened. The employment tracker has contracted for 21 of the past 22 months. ___ JPMorgan settlement with SEC worth over $700M WASHINGTON (AP) _ JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to a settlement worth more than $700 million over federal regulators' charges that it made unlawful payments to friends of public officials to win municipal bond business in Jefferson County, Ala. The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday announced the settlement with JPMorgan, which canceled interest-rate swap contracts with the county worth $700 million in March. The move lowers the county's bond debt to about $3.2 billion from $3.9 billion, but officials had no immediate comment on whether that was enough to help the county avoid filing what would be the largest municipal bankruptcy ever. ___ GM's Opel move raises anger, new uncertainty BERLIN (AP) _ General Motors Co.'s decision to scrap the sale of European subsidiary Opel raised new uncertainty Wednesday over the unit's future, astonishing politicians in Germany and Russia, and prompting workers to plan walkouts in protest. The GM board's unexpected decision to call off the sale to auto parts maker Magna International Inc. and Russian lender Sberbank was a startling end to months of haggling in which Chancellor Angela Merkel and other German leaders had strongly backed the deal. Now German workers worry GM will make even more cuts to return Opel to profit than Magna would have. Still, the decision won a cautious welcome from union officials in Britain and Poland, where workers had feared possible cutbacks in a Magna takeover. ___ Cisco earns down but says 'tipping point' passed SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Cisco Systems Inc. CEO John Chambers said Wednesday that the company's latest quarterly numbers reinforce his observation that recession-dampened orders are improving after passing a "tipping point" this summer. Net income for the world's No. 1 maker of computer-networking gear dropped 19 percent and sales fell 13 percent, but still topped Wall Street's forecasts. Cisco said net income was down 19 percent from the year-ago period to $1.8 billion, or 30 cents per share. Continued... |